1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to equipment for simulating oral surgery and, more specifically, to a device for aiding a surgeon in planning surgical cuts and procedures prior to oral surgery whereby the device is able to simulate the structure and movement of the condyle, ramus, mandible and maxilla of the patient using a cast and measurements taken from the patient to provide a model on which the surgeon can plan the operation.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art devices for simulating the structure and movement of the upper and lower jaw bones of a patient were unable to adequately provide exact movement and relationships between the bones. Such devices used a one point method of determining the relationship between the maxilla and mandible and therefore only accounted for under and overbite situations. These devices did not account for the sideways alignment of the maxilla and mandible. Furthermore, these devices are only able to align casts of the maxilla and mandible along a single point. Preparation of these devices for simulation required a large amount of time as did the examination of the structure of the maxilla and mandible in order to plan the subsequent surgery. While these units may be suitable for the particular purpose to which they address, they would not be as suitable for the purposes of the present invention as heretofore described.
It is thus desirable to provide an oral surgery simulating device wherein the casts of the maxilla and mandible may be secured thereto and be rotated axially as well as laterally and longitudinally to provide a realistic model of the movement of the bones of the patient. It is further desirable to provide an oral surgery simulating device able to take measurements relative to Frankfurt's horizontal plane and transferring the measurements to the device to provide a proper alignment of the maxilla and mandible casts of the patient in both the longitudinal and lateral directions. It is still further desirable to provide an oral surgery simulating device including a pointer having three adjustable measuring points for accurately taking the desired measurements in three different areas. It is even further desirable to provide an oral surgery simulating device able to provide a mandibular ramus facsimile which is adjustable to provide posterior, anterior, superior and inferior movement. It is still further desirable to provide an oral surgery simulating device able to reduce the preparation time necessary for planning surgery.